National One-Stop Month - A Must for each Workforce Area

There are many challenges facing the workforce investment system in the upcoming year with reauthorization and financial crisis looming. One of the biggest is establishing the workforce investment system’s identity and value with our congressional leaders. We believe the best way to do this is to have Congressional Members visit your local One Stop Centers. There is a tremendous impact when a member can see for himself or herself the wonderful service a One Stop provides to the citizens and businesses in their community.

A good time to hold these visits is during the “Congressional District Work Period” starts May 23, until June 3, 2008, when the members are back in their districts. The National Workforce Association (NWA) has compiled this guide with information about contacting Congressional members, as well as information from presentations by media and lobbying experts. Also included in this guide is useful information from other local workforce areas in Texas, New York and Florida, who talk about how they sponsored successful Congressional visits in the past. These are suggestions only, but we believe with good planning and preparation, you can host a highly successful visit with your Congressional Members. Be sure to let us know how your event goes. For help call us at (202) 842-4004 or e-mail info@nwaonline.org.

Cantwell/Collins WIA Dear Colleague

Senators Maria Cantwell and Susan Collins submitted a WIA dear colleague letter on Friday, April 4 to the Labor-HHS Appropriations subcommittee, requesting a rejection of the Administration's proposed funding cuts to WIA and the Employment Service and a restoration of funding back current levels at a minimum. Our partner organization, USA Works! took the lead in and working with Senator Cantwell to craft this letter and coordinate the other Washington groups focused on WIA programs to garner as many signatures as possible in the Senate. NWA worked closely with USA Works in this endeavor. We are pleased to report that 37 Senators signed on to the WIA dear colleague letter, an excellent showing of support for the workforce system. Please remember to thank your Senator for signing and sending his or her letter in support of the workforce system.